overlaying 1 of 3

adjective

as in underlying

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Dissimilar Words

overlaying

2 of 3

noun

as in overlying

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overlaying

3 of 3

verb

present participle of overlay
1
as in coating
to form a layer over you should apply a coat of primer first, and then overlay it with two coats of paint

Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in overlapping
to lie over parts of one another cedar shingles overlaying one another on the roof

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of overlaying
Verb
His team spent about a month overlaying influenza trends on card spending, hunting for spikes at drugstores, and found a relationship that was never clean enough to use. — John Drake, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026 In Modrić and Haaland’s cases, some do this by overlaying bows and hearts on their images. — ABC News, 11 July 2026 For that, organizers turn to the same technology used when Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya broke the two-hour-marathon barrier in 2019, overlaying data onto potential routes to find the optimal one. — Liam Tharme, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026 Fears was one of the most vocal supporters of a $55 million general obligation bond approved by Independence voters last year, earmarked for rebuilding and overlaying streets around Independence. — Ilana Arougheti, Kansas City Star, 31 Mar. 2026 As music played in the background, overlaying captions appeared on screen beside Bader, 30, who underwent bariatric surgery in December 2023. — Zoey Lyttle, PEOPLE, 3 Feb. 2026 Trying to tap the ice sheet, which covers 80 percent of Greenland, for minerals is unappealing, given that all the necessary supplies would need to be brought inland by helicopter and there are kilometers of ice overlaying parts of the rock. — Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 23 Jan. 2026 In Texas, overlaying precincts with current and proposed maps shows how elections could unfold. — Ramon Padilla, USA Today, 30 Oct. 2025 The Quantum Internet will not replace the classical Internet but augment it, overlaying quantum signals with classical bits. — Mallik Tatipamula, IEEE Spectrum, 27 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overlaying
  1. underlying
  2. coating
  3. overlapping
  4. covering
  5. overlying
Adjective
  • Chronic disease can lead to loss of weight and muscle, and unintentional weight loss can be a sign of an underlying medical problem.
    — Faye Chiu, CNN Money, 26 Aug. 2026
  • The result strongly suggested meningitis—an inflammation around the brain and spinal cord often caused by bacteria, viruses, or other pathogens—yet a battery of tests failed to detect any underlying infection.
    — Jason Liebowitz, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of underlying
Verb
  • Most record-breaking perovskite cells in labs rely on spin-coating or wet-chemical solution processing, which doesn’t scale well to large, textured industrial silicon wafers.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Bring to room temperature before portioning and coating in cinnamon-sugar.
    — Rick Martinez, Bon Appetit Magazine, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of coating
Verb
  • This time, his character materializes at a series of gatherings where lawyers, politicians, and bankers (sometimes played by confusingly overlapping actors) nurse cocktails and amiably confess to manipulating the public.
    — Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Be sure to start below the injury and wrap upward, overlapping each layer but never so tightly that fingers or toes become numb or painful.
    — Dr. Jill Grimes, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of overlapping
Verb
  • Pack a tube of petroleum jelly (Vaseline) in your first aid kit instead of antibiotic ointment and remember to flush all scrapes and cuts with copious amounts of clean water before covering them with the jelly.
    — Dr. Jill Grimes, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Ground surveys can provide more detailed information at a particular site, but covering an entire subway corridor that way would be difficult.
    — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of covering
Verb
  • Any longer may damage your overlying skin and even give you frostbite.
    — Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes.com, 19 June 2026
  • The local agricultural cooperative now struggles given the absence of irrigated agriculture in that area overlying the Ogallala.
    — Allen Best, Denver Post, 14 June 2026
Definition of overlying

Browse Nearby Words

overlay
overlaying
overlays
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Cite this Entry

“Overlaying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overlaying. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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